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Wernher von Braun biography

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Quick Facts

  • NAME: Wernher von Braun
  • OCCUPATION: Engineer, Scientist
  • BIRTH DATE: c. March 23, 1912
  • DEATH DATE: June 16, 1977
  • PLACE OF BIRTH: Wirsitz (now Wyrzysk, Poland), Germany
  • PLACE OF DEATH: Alexandria, Virginia
  • Full Name: Wernher von Braun

Best Known For

Wernher von Braun was a German engineer who worked on rocket technology, first for Germany and then for the United States.

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As director of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Marshall Space Flight Center, from 1960 to 1970, von Braun developed the Saturn IB and Saturn V space vehicles, as well as the Saturn I rocket for the Apollo 8 moon orbit in 1969. Each launch was successful. Because he was good looking and outgoing,

von Braun was occasionally the butt of both humorous and serious verbal attacks regarding the notion of former German scientists working for the U.S. space program.

In 1972, von Braun became vice president at the aerospace company Fairchild Industries, Inc. He founded the National Space Institute, aimed at gaining public support for space activities, a few years later.

Death and Legacy

Von Braun died on June 16, 1977. Throughout his long career, von Braun received several U.S. honors, as well as awards from professional societies worldwide. He authored and co-authored various works on rocket science and physics. Today, von Braun is still considered one of the most important weapons specialists in the field of rocketry and jet propulsion in the United States.

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